Owaisi raises concerns over litigation against Ajmer Dargah

Hyderabad: AIMIM MP Asaduddin Owaisi on Thursday, September 26 raised concerns over litigation against Ajmer dargah claiming it to be a temple.

“Khaja Moinuddin Chishti continues to be a guiding light for Indian Muslims; his dargah is arguably one of the most visited spiritual sites for Muslims,” Owaisi said.

He questioned, Union Minority Affairs minister Kiren Rijiju on the ministry’s stand regarding the litigation on the dargah.

“Will you stand by the Durgah Khawaja Saheb Act of 1955 & the 1991 Places of Worship Act?,” the All India Majlis-e-Ittehad ul Muslimeen (AIMIM) president asked. In a post on X, Owaisi alleged that the Waqf Board (Amendment) Bill will make the places of worship for Muslims, vulnerable to encroachment and desecration.

Petition in Rajasthan civil court to declare Ajmer Dargah a temple

Members of the Hindu Sena filed a lawsuit in the Ajmer civil court seeking the declaration of the Khaja Moinuddin Chishti dargah as a Shiva temple. The petitioners seek the dargah to be declared as ‘Bhagwan Shri Sankatmochan Mahadev Virajman Temple.

In his lawsuit, filed on September 24, Hindu Sena chief Vishnu Gupta claims that Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti came to Ajmer with Mohammad Ghori, (12-13th century Afghan ruler) who, after killing Prithviraj Chauhan, destroyed a large number of temples, including the Sankat Mochan Mahadev temple.

Citing books and purported “evidence”, the Hindu Sena claimed the roof design of the main entrance gate of the Ajmer shrine resembled a Hindu structure, and historical records suggested the existence of a Shiva temple at the site.